weaving

Chapter 1545 Letting the Barbarians Plunder
The fall of Linqing was actually the last thing Zhang Cheng wanted to see.

He even sent an order to Luo Rucai in advance, instructing him to lead the main force from Guide Prefecture in Henan to urgently reinforce Linqing. This was not just for show; he genuinely wanted to protect Linqing.

Besides the fact that Linqing was a key hub of the Grand Canal and an important location for the imperial court's grain transport, he also secretly kept nearly a thousand shi of grain in Linqing City. Although it wasn't a lot, it wouldn't be good for the Tartars to benefit from it.

However, despite all their calculations, they hadn't anticipated that the corrupt officials and gentry in Linqing City would refuse to allow Luo Rucai's troops to enter the city to help defend it, simply because of Luo Rucai's previous status as a bandit.

…………

"Things have come to this point. Linqing has been occupied by the enemy, and all the officials and generals of Linqing Prefecture, County and Garrison have died for their country. I think we should refrain from blaming them."

After Zhang Cheng finished speaking, he looked at Bian Yongqing and Zhang Ruoqi, and then asked Hu Yiwen, "What did Luo Rucai say?"

"General Luo reported that he led 4,300 personal guards to rush to the aid of Linqing but could not enter because there were too many enemy troops. He did not bring any supplies, and the infantry could not keep up either. He had no choice but to retreat to Xiaotan Town along the Wei River in Daming Prefecture to set up camp."

By the 18th, bandits had begun plundering villages and settlements around Guantao and Guanxian, and even within the territory of Daming Prefecture, bandit scouts had appeared. General Luo's cavalry had intercepted and killed more than thirty bandit scouts.

"Alas." Bian Yongqing sighed before saying, "The loss of Linqing is a fait accompli, and there's no point in saying more."

He looked at Marquis Yongning, Zhang Cheng, and asked, "What should we do next?"

"Wait!"

"Wait?" Bian Yongqing looked puzzled. "What is Uncle Yongning waiting for? You need to explain this to us..."

"Wait for the enemy to divide their forces."

Marquis Yongning Zhang Cheng's answer was firm and resolute, leaving no room for doubt from others.

Bian Yongqing looked at Yongningbo with suspicion, clearly not understanding the meaning behind his words. He turned to look at Zhang Ruoqi, but Zhang Ruoqi was also in a state of confusion and had no intention of thinking about it further.

Zhang Cheng also noticed Bian Yongqing's expression. Unlike Zhang Ruoqi, who needed a reprimand, Bian Yongqing was a very good person and had repeatedly defended himself in front of the Emperor, something Zhang Cheng was aware of.

Moreover, no matter what, Bian Yongqing was still one of Emperor Chongzhen's favorites, and he was still useful to him!
"Lord Bian, please follow me."

Zhang Cheng led Bian Yongqing to the map. He pointed to the map and said, "Look, these red lines all indicate the movement of the enemy cavalry. The arrows all converge on Linqing, which shows that Linqing has become a gathering place for the enemy cavalry."

When Zhang Cheng got to this point, he turned and glanced at Bian Yongqing before pointing to the map and continuing, "Our loyalist army is divided into two routes, east and west. The eastern route is currently halted at the Wuqiang-Fucheng line, fearing the might of the enemy and unwilling to move south."

The vanguard of our western army, tasked with supporting the emperor, has reached Nangong County, which is only a little over a hundred li from Linqing. Cavalry can reach it in a day with a rapid advance, and infantry can reach the walls of Linqing in three days at most.

“But… there are traces of the enemy in Qiu County, Guantao, Guan County, and even Daming and Guangping.”

Bian Yongqing also pointed to the map and said, "This shows that the enemy also divided their forces to plunder, and did not gather all of them under the walls of Linqing City."

Upon hearing his words, the Earl of Yongning wore an awkward smile and said, "Please consider this, Lord Bian: bandits from other places are converging on Linqing, while most of the bandits who have branched off from Linqing have not left Dongchang Prefecture."

"At the speed of the enemy cavalry, they can reach Linqing in a day or two, covering forty or fifty li. Once there is an alarm in Linqing, the enemy cavalry who have been looting in the surrounding areas will surely converge on Linqing from all directions. Moreover, each enemy cavalryman has three horses and one soldier, so they can fight as soon as they arrive." "As for our western route loyalist army, although it also has more than 30,000 troops, most of them are infantry. If they advance in coordination with the cavalry, they can only travel thirty li a day at most. Before our army even reaches Linqing, the enemy will have already received the alarm and will surely recall the Jurchens who are looting outside, and prepare for battle to wait for our army."

"Then what are we waiting for?" Bian Yongqing asked, still unwilling to give up.

"We are waiting for the enemy to split their forces." Zhang Ruoqi, as expected of the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of War, was quite capable.

Bian Yongqing looked at Zhang Ruoqi with a puzzled expression and said, "The enemy...aren't they already dividing their forces to plunder?"

“Dongchang Prefecture is too small. The enemy can plunder separately and support each other. It can’t be considered a real division of forces. Besides, the enemy’s ambitions are not limited to a mere Dongchang Prefecture,” Zhang Ruoqi continued.

“Then…why don’t we advance our troops into Qinghe first? Once the enemy forces split up to plunder, we can then recapture Linqing in one fell swoop and reopen the canal.” Bian Yongqing was still preoccupied with the matter of restoring the canal.

Seeing that Zhang Ruoqi no longer offered an answer, he couldn't help but turn his gaze to Marquis Yongning, Zhang Cheng, once again.

Zhang Cheng looked at Bian Yongqing and said with a smile, "Lord Bian, I know you are worried about the Emperor and are working for the country. However, some things are not necessarily better done sooner rather than later."

"Take the Linqing incident for example. Our 30,000 troops here to defend the emperor may not be able to defeat the enemy, but they are still a great threat to the enemy."

"If our main army advances into Qinghe, we will inevitably be detected by the enemy cavalry. Knowing that such a large army is nearby, why would they divide their forces to plunder? They will certainly mobilize all their cavalry to first defeat our army before they feel at ease, won't they?"

"This...this isn't...allowing the enemy to plunder?" Bian Yongqing looked completely bewildered.

"This is also a last resort."

Although he was also getting annoyed, Zhang Cheng still had to explain to Bian Yongqing: "As you know, before leaving the capital, the Emperor summoned me and specifically instructed me not to engage in reckless battles with the enemy and not to squander the imperial army."

Therefore, we can only wait for the enemy to split their forces and plunder in all directions, so that we can find an opportunity to first annihilate one of their forces to weaken their strength. When the time is right, we can then combine our forces and launch a pincer attack on the enemy.

"Originally, I was thinking of using Linqing as bait to lure the enemy to the city of Linqing, first using the strong city of Linqing to wear down the enemy's morale, and then joining forces with Zhao Guangbian's eastern army to fight the enemy in Linqing."

Oh... what a pity!

Seeing that Bian Yongqing had stopped asking questions, Zhang Cheng continued, "Now we not only cannot advance on Qinghe, but we also have to divide our troops to garrison it, showing the enemy our weakness."

"How should we divide our forces?" Bian Yongqing asked.

“Leave one battalion of troops in Nangong to observe the enemy’s situation; the main force will move south along the Hu Zhang River, pass through Julu, go through Pingxiang, and enter the Jize and Quzhou area of ​​Guangping Prefecture, and then decide on the next course of action.”

At that time, we can advance past Qiu County and head straight for Linqing; we can also enter Dongchang Prefecture; or we can pass through Daming Prefecture to reinforce Yanzhou. In this way, we can avoid threatening the Jurchens, preventing them from dividing their forces, protect the southern three regions of the capital from Jurchen plunder, and send troops to reinforce Shandong Province at any time.

"It seems that this is the only way now." Bian Yongqing finally had nothing more to say.

At this moment, Zhang Ruoqi stepped forward and came to the Earl of Yongning. He bowed and said, "Earl of Yongning, please give me one hundred elite cavalry. I am willing to pave the way for Commander Zhang and make sure that the prefectures and counties along the route prepare the necessary provisions for the army in advance."

Seeing the eagerness of Vice Minister Zhang before him, the Earl of Yongning naturally wouldn't dampen his enthusiasm. He immediately ordered, "Mingyuan, send word to Zhang Mingda, instructing him to take one hundred cavalrymen to accompany and protect Vice Minister Zhang. Everything on this trip shall be done according to Vice Minister Zhang's orders!"